For anyone interested, Tigran Petrosian: His Life And Games by Vasiliev is now back in print. I have searched for this book for years and years. (It is even further reading in Silman's How To Reassess Your Chess.) The original has been rediculously priced at over $85 dollars all this time.
I just bought a "new" edition from amazon.com for only $23.35.
Here are the differences/comparisons:
The cover is still a picture of Petrosian. (This isn't a Harding Simpole with a generic cover.)
Someone else reprinted it, but they basically just recopied the old one and insterted the story of how they got the publishing rights.
The back has an algebraic version of all the games. Actually, someone just took the games in pgn form and pasted them and printed them. There are no notes or anything on the algebraic versions in the back. It is just bare scores with no spaces between moves.
The original book is quite nice (and untouched).
I have come through several hand corrected points in the book (a typed 0-1 changed to 1-0 by someones handwriting), but I think they must have been in the original.
Here is what I have looked at in the 1 day (!) that I have had it.
An interesting interview where they asked Spassky and Petrosian the same questions, each with 20 seconds to answer, before one of their matches.
A nice description of Petrosian's style and Korchnoi's.
A lot of nice back stories and biographical info. (For instance, Larsen was hospitalized with high blood pressure during the 6 streak loss to Fischer. Even then Fischer played mind games and kept changing the playing venue.)
I have played through three games as well (in the original descriptive notation).
The first was against Smyslov. The games and annotations were quite nice, but I have to confess that I have seen it annotated better (perhaps in Clarke's book).
The second game was a nice win against Spassky circa 1969. Again the game was great, but the annotations weren't in depth like I would have liked.
The third game I played through was worth the price of the book. It's the last game in the book and an epic struggle with Larsen at San Antonio 1972. Petrosian actually annotates this one himself (from the magazine 64)!!! The annotations are not only great, but there is also some nice practical advice.
One line that I particularly liked was something like this:
Petrosian sacrificed a pawn in the opening and was running out of threats.
"... somehow White's initiative had dried up, and he had nothing for the pawn. But then I remembered an ancient truth: many players, sacrificing a pawn, lose because they play as if they had lost it, rather than deliberately parted with it."
In other words, keep your head together and don't get discouraged. Just keep trying to play the right moves, and most importantly keep in a winning frame of mind.
Great advice from a World Champion !!!
This isn't a full review, just some insights into the book.
Originally posted by paulbuchmanfromficsmmm, always enjoyed replaying Petrosians games, maybe after my Karpov book i should get this.
For anyone interested, Tigran Petrosian: His Life And Games by Vasiliev is now back in print. I have searched for this book for years and years. (It is even further reading in Silman's How To Reassess Your Chess.) The original has been rediculously priced at over $85 dollars all this time.
I just bought a "new" edition from amazon.com for o ...[text shortened]... World Champion !!!
This isn't a full review, just some insights into the book.
Hi Paul.
You mentioned Clarke.
A lot of people think his book on Tal is the best Tal book there is.
Even better that Tal on Tal.
I agree but he himself said his book on Petrosian was better and
the Petrosian crowd simply adore that book.
Never a big Petrosian fan and stopped Clarke's book ½ way through.
(actually long before half).
We were not enjoying each other at all.
Of all the great games he played I often see this game attached to any
article on Petrosian.
He is White and it is the most unlike Petrosian game you will ever see.
That is why they show it, that is why I am showing it.
Petrosian v Nievergelt, Belgrade 1954.
That's a nice game above!
Last week, a friend loaned me some old Chess Life Yearbooks (1968,1969,1970/ Hardbound!). I played through quite a few nice games (mostly the Keres annotates articles). I don't remember which column this was in, but I really liked it.
That's a brutal destruction of a Correspondence World Champion over the board. (Over the board I think Estrin was only an IM.)
Petrosian was especially aggressive that day.
Originally posted by paulbuchmanfromficsdude is Petrosian book in descriptive notation?
That's a nice game above!
Last week, a friend loaned me some old Chess Life Yearbooks (1968,1969,1970/ Hardbound!). I played through quite a few nice games (mostly the Keres annotates articles). I don't remember which column this was in, but I really liked it.
[pgn][Event "Moscow"]
[Site "It"]
[Date "1968.??.??"]
[Result "1-0"]
[White hink Estrin was only an IM.)
Petrosian was especially aggressive that day.
Originally posted by KneeCapsI don't think he actually wrote an annotated game collection. He did occasionally annotate for magazines however. The closest thing to an actual game collection, I think, is Petrosian's Legacy. It's more like a compilation of lectures than an actual book. He does look at some of his games, including the mini-match with Fischer(but not all of the games). One chapter title is "Why I Like Bg5 (vs Kings Indian)" or something similar. It doesn't quite qualify as a games collection, but it's pretty good.
Hi paul,
Do you know if Petrosian ever wrote a book annotating his own games?
Originally posted by paulbuchmanfromficsOK, thanks. I think I've seen Petrosian's Legacy on ebay a few times but I always overlooked it because they were asking for $30 or something ridiculous like that.
I don't think he actually wrote an annotated game collection. He did occasionally annotate for magazines however. The closest thing to an actual game collection, I think, is Petrosian's Legacy. It's more like a compilation of lectures than an actual book. He does look at some of his games, including the mini-match with Fischer(but not all of ...[text shortened]... something similar. It doesn't quite qualify as a games collection, but it's pretty good.
Originally posted by KneeCapsThe 2 volume "Complete Games" by Shekhtman has lots of games annotated by Petrosian in Informant style. It's a big well bound hardback (Pergamon if memory serves) with the games in algebraic. It's not the cheapest book out there and I remember it retailed at around £20- 18 years ago.
Hi paul,
Do you know if Petrosian ever wrote a book annotating his own games?
Having said that I can't resist recalling that when the late David Bronstein was staying in London he came round to the chess booksellers I was working at and was of the opinion that £20- for the Shekhtman book was a bargain compared to the 20p we were charging for a second hand copy of "Dynamic Chess Openings" by Raymond Keene.
Here's a review by Edward Winter:
http://www.chesshistory.com/winter/extra/petrosian.html
Also Petrosian's chapter in "How to Open a Chess game" (RHM) is particularly good. (Indeed the whole book is excellent, albeit the rotten binding means it's difficult to find in one piece.)
Originally posted by paulbuchmanfromficsThe Keres articles from Chess Life were reprinted as "Power Chess" (Mckay).
[b]That's a nice game above!
Last week, a friend loaned me some old Chess Life Yearbooks (1968,1969,1970/ Hardbound!). I played through quite a few nice games (mostly the Keres annotates articles).
"Power Chess deserves to take its place among the outstanding chess books of our time. Combining deep analysis with interesting, insightful writing, it belongs on the bookshelf of every chessplayer." That's taken from a contemporary review at the Chess Cafe and I couldn't agree more.
Originally posted by paulbuchmanfromficsI have an old copy which I got him to autograph at a simul in 1979. He thumped me in the simul. There is a lot of personal bio in a book first published in Germany back in the 60's (the book on Geller) . The account of his visit to the Armenian communities in South America are most amusing.
[b]For anyone interested, Tigran Petrosian: His Life And Games by Vasiliev is now back in print. I have searched for this book for years and years. (It is even further reading in Silman's How To Reassess Your Chess.) The original has been rediculously priced at over $85 dollars all this time.
I just bought a "new" edition from amazon.com for o ...[text shortened]... e 64)!!! The annotations are not only great, but there is also some nice practical advice.
Originally posted by caissad4LOL
I have an old copy which I got him to autograph at a simul in 1979. He thumped me in the simul. There is a lot of personal bio in a book first published in Germany back in the 60's (the book on Geller) . The account of his visit to the Armenian communities in South America are most amusing.
When you said "He thumped me in the simul.", I thought you meant he literally thumped you. I was thinking that was a little out of line or that Petrosian must have been a bit playful. Now, I understand that you meant he just gave you a good beating, but I was laughing picturing a thump on the knuckle (or head). 🙂
It's great that you actually got to play him!
I have never seen one of the great ones live.
A friend of a friend played Larry Christiansen in a simul once. He lost really fast, so they set up the pieces and started a new one. After losing three miniatures, the amateur decided to throw the towel.